Want to reduce your handicap?

[tsped83]

Please don't take this the wrong way because I'm not trying to patronise you (or anyone else) but the fact that you have to ask this question says a lot about why you play off 18.

You obviously can hit the ball well to play to that handicap and are clearly capable of making par on any given hole but you don't do so on a regular basis, hence your handicap.

So my question to you is....... Do you stand over every shot and just see the landing area of where you can hit the ball to based on your best shots? Or do you look to see where the 'safe' place is to miss? Do you smack your 2nd shot on a par 5 as hard as you can or do you think about your best wedge distance for your 3rd shot? Do you play away from bunkers and other hazards or do you just look as far down the fairway as you can drive the ball? On a 380 yard par 4 with bunkers at 240, do you think driver/wedge or 3 wood short of the bunkers then 8 iron?

Golf is a bit like snooker in many ways, the best players stand over the ball thinking 'where do I want to play my NEXT shot from?'

Like I said, don't take my response the wrong way, it is a genuine attempt to get people to think a bit more which will save them shots. Quicker, easier and cheaper than a lesson!*


*Doesn't mean anyone should stop taking lessons though.

Fair enough fella, I think I see where you're coming from now. The comment about 2nd shot par 5 is all me, unless of course I'm coming out sideways from the trees in which case it's my 3rd shot which is an ill thought out swipe.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

How many bad decisions do you make in a round?
5-10 usually more if I'm playing badly.

How many 'hero' shots do you take on?
Very few. I know my limitations. In a roll up game I might give it a go or in a solo round

How often do you follow one bad shot with another?
Surprisingly few other than making two bad swings. If I make an error I try and get it in play asap. Of course on bad swing days the chances of poor execution on consecutive shots is much higher

Do you automatically reach for your driver on every par 4/5?
Depends on the course, the tightness of the hole, the way I'm playing. Not always

Do you play to your strengths?
Yes. I consider myself ok from less than 100 yards so often play long par fours as a par five with my shot and lay up into this area

You can reduce your handicap just by thinking about what you do.

I disagree. I have a poor short game and a hot/cold putting stroke and my opinion is these areas are the key to good scoring especially on bad swinging days. You can think positively all you want but if you can't execute you can't score

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

I disagree. I have a poor short game and a hot/cold putting stroke and my opinion is these areas are the key to good scoring especially on bad swinging days. You can think positively all you want but if you can't execute you can't score

Fair play to you if you don't make any mental errors :thup: Even the pro's admit to making a few

Poor short game? Is that chipping or pitching? Have you thought about whether it's best to get as close as possible to the green or lay up a full wedge distance further back depending on what your issue is?

EVERY amateur has scope to improve!

 

[drdel]

Are you saying I should take my golf seriously - if I did that I'd have no excuse for crap play - at least, at the moment, I can kid myself that I could be better if I played properly.

I'm in the Phil Mickleson camp (but without the talent) - whack it hard and have some fun!

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Are you saying I should take my golf seriously - if I did that I'd have no excuse for crap play - at least, at the moment, I can kid myself that I could be better if I played properly.

I'm in the Phil Mickleson camp (but without the talent) - whack it hard and have some fun!

I can answer your question by directing you towards the title of this thread

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

I need to chip and put better to reduce my HC.. Just thinking about it wont help, its all about poor execution at the moment...

Really? That is the only cause of you dropping shots?

Once again, with all due respect and not trying to patronise, if that is your only problem then your chipping and putting must be horrendous!

I'm sure better decision making could help you shave a few shots off your handicap :thup:

 

[Airlie_Andy]

I do see the wisdom in course management but as an example. I am a 4 iron distance away from a well bunkered green. Lets say I hit my 4 iron well enough to be somewhere on the green 5 out of 10 times and 3 times I'm in the bunker and 2 times im chipping. Now out of those 5 times I hit the green I hole a birdie putt once 2 putt for a par 3 times and 3 putt once. Now the 3 times I'm in the bunker I get out and 2 putt and then the 2 times im chipping I get up and down once and the other is a chip and 2 putt. Now I appreciate I've removed any absolute horror scores from this scenario but my average score for that hole is 0.4 over par.

So lets say instead of hitting the 4 iron I hit a club to leave myself my favourite yardage. Now I'm going to have to hit this shot close enough for a single putt that I hole at least 6 times out of 10 to maintain the same average score and that's assuming the other 4 times are no worse than bogey.

Just another way of looking at it.

 

[Birchy]

I do see the wisdom in course management but as an example. I am a 4 iron distance away from a well bunkered green. Lets say I hit my 4 iron well enough to be somewhere on the green 5 out of 10 times and 3 times I'm in the bunker and 2 times im chipping. Now out of those 5 times I hit the green I hole a birdie putt once 2 putt for a par 3 times and 3 putt once. Now the 3 times I'm in the bunker I get out and 2 putt and then the 2 times im chipping I get up and down once and the other is a chip and 2 putt. Now I appreciate I've removed any absolute horror scores from this scenario but my average score for that hole is 0.4 over par.

So lets say instead of hitting the 4 iron I hit a club to leave myself my favourite yardage. Now I'm going to have to hit this shot close enough for a single putt that I hole at least 6 times out of 10 to maintain the same average score and that's assuming the other 4 times are no worse than bogey.

Just another way of looking at it.

If you hit the green 5 out of 10 times with a 4 iron you should be on tour :thup:

 

[Region3]

Agree with Birchy ^^. I reckon I could count on one hand the golfers on this site who hit the green 50% of the time from 4 iron distance.

The OP isn't saying NEVER go for a green from a long way out, just that you need to weigh up the pro's and con's before you do.
If the worst case scenario is you end up in a bunker that you get up and down from 1/3 of the time, then it's a no brainer to go for the green.
Put a water hazard in front of the green so a miss-hit 4 iron gets wet, and that's where you need to think carefully about what you're going to do.

Another scenario. Your 2nd shot into a par 5 is 30yds further than you hit your Sunday best 3 wood. There is a water hazard all down the right side of the fairway.
Do you smack the 3 wood to get as close to the green as you can for your third shot, or play a mid iron and leave a nice wedge distance?

I know which is more fun, and it isn't the one that gives the best scores over time.

 

[Jack_bfc]

Really? That is the only cause of you dropping shots?

Once again, with all due respect and not trying to patronise, if that is your only problem then your chipping and putting must be horrendous!

I'm sure better decision making could help you shave a few shots off your handicap :thup:

I believe my course management and decision making is ok. I try and hit the right shots for the right reasons.

Its execution that is the problem.

I take all the 'gilrly' Handicap advice. Clubbing up, laying up. avoiding the hazards. aiming at middle of fairways greens and not taking risks..

My stats say I hit 75% of fairways (not long though obviously) yet only 15% of GIR and average too many puts and my up and downs aren't up to scratch....

I don't just stand there and hit it... I think about my next shot and all that. Then I (miss) hit it...

I will get better this year, I know that... Still not played a qualifier since last July to test out my theories..... And apparently most of the comps aren't qualifiers anyway..... So we will see.

 

[Airlie_Andy]

If you hit the green 5 out of 10 times with a 4 iron you should be on tour :thup:

Those figures are for illustration purposes only. The point still stands that I can quite easily mess up a wedge shot as well but now I've taken an extra shot to get there. So without actually studying the statistics of your own game how do you know which approach actually helps you score better on average? Does taking the less risky option automatically mean you will score better over a period of time? Or does it just reduce the chance of the occasional big number?

 

[Birchy]

Those figures are for illustration purposes only. The point still stands that I can quite easily mess up a wedge shot as well but now I've taken an extra shot to get there. So without actually studying the statistics of your own game how do you know which approach actually helps you score better on average? Does taking the less risky option automatically mean you will score better over a period of time? Or does it just reduce the chance of the occasional big number?

I know that and I didn't mean the reply to sound as snotty as it did, sorry :rofl:

I think you need to find value in each shot. It will vary depending on your ability. Taking the less risky option wont always pay dividends in the long run but that's where the good players can work out what's the best way to get the lowest score they can on the day.

Ive not quite mastered it yet

 

[Deleted member 1147]

How many bad decisions do you make in a round? - 3 or 4

How many 'hero' shots do you take on? - 3 or 4

How often do you follow one bad shot with another? - very rarely

Do you automatically reach for your driver on every par 4/5? - no

Do you play to your strengths? - mostly

I enjoy an adventurous long game, so even when I've planned my round beforehand, I quite often change my mind when faced with a risk/reward shot.
I prefer to leave short chips/pitches than full wedges, so I tend to attack and hope that misses will leave more manageable up & downs.
I've always preferred to leave as short an approach shot as possible, normally I'd rather have a wedge from semi-rough than a mid-iron from the fairway.

 

[Airlie_Andy]

I know that and I didn't mean the reply to sound as snotty as it did, sorry :rofl:

I think you need to find value in each shot. It will vary depending on your ability. Taking the less risky option wont always pay dividends in the long run but that's where the good players can work out what's the best way to get the lowest score they can on the day.

Ive not quite mastered it yet

I didn't take it that way so don't worry.

It's something im going to take a bit more seriously this season but without stats its hard to know which is actually the better option in the long run.

Say you have a long ish carry over water and 6 times out 10 you'll make it so you have 4 miss strikes. Now say you lay up to 100 yards and now 8 times out of 10 you clear the water and have 2 miss strikes.

Going for it has taken you a total of 18 shots over 10 rounds. 6 shots clear the water 4 shots go into the water. 4 penalty shots and then 4 chips over the water =18.

Laying up has taken you 20 shots even if all 10 from 100 yards clear the water. If 2 of those shots get wet then its 24 shots over the course of 10 rounds.

I appreciate other factors come into it but it's just another way of looking at it.

 

[scottbrown]

I think the key one here is playing to your strengths.
If your short game is poor what is the point of trying to get close to the green in 2 on a par 5? Surely better to hit your favourite club so lay up to that distance.
Horses for courses.
I always back myself for a good chance to get up and down around the green ( don't always do it ) so prefer to ( if I can't reach in 2 ) get as close as possible as that gives me the best chance of birdie and a guaranteed par. But this doesn't work for everyone.

The same as hitting driver, I hit driver because I prefer to be as close on a par 4 as possible, however I play foursomes with a guy that hates shots inside 100 yards so sometimes I will hit a shorter club off the tee to leave him a full shot into the green.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

9 holes out of 18 get somewhere on or around the green in regulation and in OK shape;
9 holes out of 18 get somewhere on or around the green in one over regulation and in OK shape;
50% down in two (from on or around green) and no worse than down in three for the rest and you are playing to 18

easy game